London-based Hogan Lovells has announced its intention to merge with Wall Street’s oldest law firm, Cadwalader, Wickersham & Taft, to create a nearly £2.7bn law firm, as the trend of mega-mergers continues in the market.
The firm, which will be known as Hogan Lovells Cadwalader, is subject to customary closing conditions, including a vote by the partners of each firm in 2026.
The combined entity will field 3,100 lawyers globally. The merged firm will operate through five primary hubs: Washington, DC., New York, London, Germany, and the Mediterranean region (France, Italy, Spain).
It is proposed that Miguel Zaldivar of Hogan Lovells will serve as chief executive, while Cadwalader’s leadership, Pat Quinn and Wes Misson, will take on major international management roles.
“Clients are increasingly looking for law firms with deep sector expertise and broad global reach to advise on their most complex mandates around the world,” Zaldivar said on the plans.
Quinn added, “Throughout our discussions, it has been clear that we are driven by the same core values – excellence, ambition, collaboration, and an unwavering commitment to our clients, people, and society.”
This move comes 15 years after Washington DC firm Hogan & Hartson merged with UK silver circle firm Lovells to become today’s Hogan Lovells. The firm, for the first time, surpassed £2bn in revenue back in 2023, and it generated £2.69bn in its most recent results.
Mega-merger trend continues
This is the third transatlantic merger in the last two months.
It follows a $2.7bn tie-up between London-based Ashurst and Seattle-based Perkins Coie announced a $2.7bn merger inked in November, shortly before Chicago-based Winston and Strawn and Taylor Wessing revealed their merger earlier this month.
Additionally, A&O Shearman celebrated its first year as a merged firm by posting results showcasing £2.9bn in revenue, and Herbert Smith Freehills’ merger with the US firm Kramer Levin went live on 1 June.
The ambition for some is to join the ‘Global Elite’ table, where practices like Kirkland & Ellis, the highest-grossing and most profitable law firm in the world, generate nearly $9bn.
It is also part of the strategy of ‘keeping competitive’ in an era when clients need more globalised law firms to meet their expectations. Speaking to City AM earlier this month, Karen Davies, Ashurst’s global chair, said: “Clients want global solutions, and that is what drives everything in our business.”